Jewish Names in the World of Medieval Islam: Women's Names
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Jewish Names in the World of Medieval Islam: Women's Names

Compiled by Yehoshua ben Haim haYerushalmi (MKA Zachary Kessin)

Women's Names from the Geniza

From, Smith, Julia,``Jewish Women's Names in an Arab Context: Names from the Geniza of Cairo'' Proceedings of the KWHS, (2001). Used by permission.
The - after a letter represents an over bar and the . under a letter represents an accent.
'Abla
'Afaf
Akramiyya (elder)
'Alam (flag, banner)
Ama'im (turbans = men, may be short for Sitt al-Ama'im)
Amat al-'Aziz (servant of the Omnipotent)
Amat al-Qadir (servant of the Almighty)
Amat al-Wahid (servant of the Unique)
'Atika
'Aziza (dear)
Bagdad (may be short for Sitt Bagdad)
Bahiyya (radiant)
Banat
Banuqa
Baqa (long life)
Baqiyya
Baraka (blessings)
Barra
Berakha
Bushr (good tidings)
Cassia
Dalal (coquetry)
Dhahab (gold)
Dhukhr (treasure)
Diya (light, brightness)
Esther (foreign)
Fahda (cheetah)
Fadla
Fa'iza (favorite)
Fakhr (glory)
Faraj (relief)
Farajiyya
Faras
Furayja
Geveret 'Alanot (queen of the girls, Hebrew rendering of Sitt al-Banat)
Ghaliya (dear, precious)
Ghunya (gain)
Haritha
Hasab (noble)
Hasna (belle)
Haya (bashful)
Hayfa' (slender wisp)
Haziyya (favorite)
Hiba (gift)
Hilala (new moon)
Husn (beauty)
Jamila (beautiful)
Jawhara
Jayyida (first rate)
Karima (sister)
Kassah (upper class, may be Sitt al-Kassah)
Khafar (basful)
Khalifa (substitute)
Khazariyya (the Turkish woman)
Khiba' (hidden treasure)
Khulla (friendship)
Kifa' (reward)
Kufu
Labwa (lioness)
Layla
Ma'ani
Mahfuza (guarded, perhaps by God)
Malika (queen)
Mawadda (love)
Mawlat (lady/mistress)
Maymuna (good auspice)
Milah (fair)
Miriam
Mu'ammala (hoped for)
Mu'azzaza (highly esteemed)
Mubaraka (blessed one)
Mudallila (coquette, bold)
Muffadat (one for whom one is prepared to give one's life)
Muluk (king, may be short for Sitt al-Muluk)
Muna (wish fulfilled)
Mu'nisa (intimate friend)
Na'ama
Naba' (excellence, supremacy)
Nabila (noble)
Nafisa (precious)
Najiya (saved)
Nasab (nobility)
Nasiya
Nasr (victory)
Nazar (control, competence)
Nisaba (noble)
Qurra (delight of the eyes)

Rafi'a (sublime)
Ramle
Rashida
Rayyisa
Rebekah
Rivka
Sa'ada (happiness)
Sabah (morning)
Sadah (lords, may be Sitt al-Sadah)
Salama (well being)
Samra (dark brown)
Sara
Sarwa (cypress)
Sayyida (lady)
Sitt A'daha (mistress of her enemies)
Sitt al-Agran (mistress of her peers)
Sitt al-Ahl (mistress of the family)
Sitt al-'Ashir (mistress of the clan)
Sitt al-Banat (Mistress of the girls)
Sitt al-Bayt (mistress of the house)
Sitt al-Dalal (mistress of the bold)
Sitt al-Dar (mistress of the house)
Sitt al-Fadl (mistress of the nobles)
Sitt al-Fakhr (mistress of glory)
Sitt al-Furs (mistress of the Persians)
Sitt al-Ghalb (lady of overcoming)
Sitt al-Gharb (mistress of the West)
Sitt al-Husn (mistress of beauty)
Sitt al-Iraq (mistress of Iraq)
Sitt al-'Izz (mistress of fame)
Sitt al-Jami' (mistress of everyone)
Sitt al-Khassa (mistress of the elite)
Sitt al-Khawat (mistress of the sisters)
Sitt al-Kull (mistress over all)
Sitt al-Kuttab (mistress of the scribes)
Sitt al-Ma'ali (lady of excellence)
Sitt al-Milah (mistress of the fair)
Sitt al-Nas (mistress of mankind)
Sitt al-Nasab (mistress of the nobles)
Sitt al-Nazzar (lady of control)
Sitt al-Qa'ida (lady of the general)
Sitt al-Ri'asa (lady of leadership)
Sitt al-Sada (mistress of the lords)
Sitt al-Sirr (lady of the secret)
Sitt al-Sirr
Sitt al-Su'ada (mistress of the happy ones)
Sitt al-Thana' (mistress of praise)
Sitt al-Tujjar (mistress of the merchants)
Sitt al-Turaf (mistress of the gifts)
Sitt al-Yumm (mistress of good luck)
Sitt al-Zaman (mistress of her kind)
Sitt Bagdad (mistress of Bagdad)
Sitt Ghalb (mistress overcoming)
Sitt Ghazal (lady gazelle)
Sitt Hidhq (mistress of efficiency)
Sitt Ikhtiyar (lady of preference)
Sitt Naba' (lady excellence)
Sitt Salaf
Sittan (lady)
Sitthum (their mistress)
Sittuna (mistress)
Sumr (dark brown)
Surura (happy)
Sutayt (little lady)
Talba
Tawfiq (success)
Thamira (fertile)
Tujjar
Turayk (little Turk)
Turfa (precious gift)
Turkiyya (the Turk)
Umm al-Khayr (mother of goodness)
Umm Bayda' (mother of the fair girl)
Umm Farjun
Umm Halila
Umm Hasan
Umm Musharrafa
Umm Sa'id (mother of propitiousness)
Umm Sitt al-Nass (mother of the mistress of mankind)
Umm Thana (mother of praise)
Wa'd
Wazira (Vizier)
Wuhsha
Yaman
Yumm (good luck)
Zafira (victorious)
Zayn (beauty)

Bynames used in place of given Names

Al-Tifrat
Al-Mua'llima (the schoolmistress)
Al-Wuhsha (object of yearning)
Al-Jawziyya (nougat)

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